MACOMB, Ill. -

Trailing at the half by one point, Oral Roberts University pulled away after the break with a punishing defensive effort in a 78-66 victory over Western Illinois University on Monday at Waste Management Court. Kevi Luper led the Golden Eagles with 27 points in the win.

ORU is now 11-7 (5-2 Summit League).

Luper was 11-for-25 from the floor and added four assists. Jordan Pyle led a trio of post contributors with 14 points, all after the half. Amber Carver matched a season high with 10 points, while Dominique Allen added eight.

Sadie Webb led Western (6-11, 3-4 Summit League) with 21 points, but she scored only three after the break after ORU ramped up the defense.

ORU shot 48.3% from the floor, while WIU shot at a 42.2% clip. Rebounding went the way of the Eagles, 39-31.
Pyle led all players with nine boards, while Carver and Jaci Bigham added seven each.

Two nights after tallying just six points against IUPUI, the All-American Luper was on fire to start the game. The junior scored eight in the game's first 2:34, leading ORU to an 11-4 lead.

But the home team battled back and took control. A basket by Saule Kontautaite put the Leathernecks ahead, 19-18, at the 10:55 mark.

But Luper continued to shoot lights out, hitting a three right before the under-8 media timeout. The basket gave the Golden Eagles a 26-24 lead and was the eighth lead change of a back-and-forth first half.

The first half was close all the way, with the teams trading the lead 13 times. A three-pointer by Allen, her second of the half, sent ORU to the intermission down, 40-39.

In the scorer's battle, Webb led all players with 18 points at the break, while Luper had 16.

ORU clamped down defensively to start the second half, and the effort paid off. Pyle hit a pair of free throws with 15:57 left to cap a 9-0 run and give the Golden Eagles a 48-40 lead.

Luper hit the 20-point mark for the 60th time in her ORU career with a pull-up jumper at the 12:01 mark. The deuce put ORU on top, 56-48.

It was Allen who came up huge again as Western tried to rally late. The senior was instrumental in a steal on the defensive end, then ran the floor and drew a foul on the other. Allen hit both free throws, giving the Eagles a 69-60 advantage with 4:22 on the clock.

Luper again hit the mark to give ORU their first double-digit lead of the game. Her 11th and final field goal of the night made the score 73-62 with 1:57 left, and ORU led comfortably for the remainder of the game.

After the first half featured 13 lead changes, the second half had just one. ORU led for the final 19:44 of the game.
ORU has now won six straight games against Western Illinois.

The Golden Eagles return to Tulsa for a four-game home stand, which starts on Saturday. ORU kicks off the swing against Oakland, with tip time beginning at 2:05 pm CT.